Exploration of the Effect of Guhuaisi Kangfu Pills on Neovascularisation of Steroid-Induced Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head in Rats Based on Gene Expression of VEGF/PI3K/Akt Pathway
Objective To observe the therapeutic effect and mechanism of Guhuaisi Kangfu Pills on rats with steroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head(SONFH).Methods Sixty rats were randomly divided into blank group,model group,Xianling Gubao Capsules group and Guhuaisi Kangfu Pills low-,medium-and high-dose groups,10 rats in each group.Except for the blank group,the SONFH model was established by lipopolysaccharide combined with Glucocorticoid induction method in all other groups of rats.At the end of the intervention,for the femoral head,blood vessel radiography was performed to observe the microvascular changes in the bone marrow,and hematoxylin-eosin(HE)staining and calculation of the empty bone trap rate,Micro-CT scanning analysis,and compression experiments were carried out,and the real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR)was used to detect the gene expressions of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase(PI3K),protein kinase B(Akt)1,vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)and platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule 1(CD31)in whole blood.Results Compared with the blank group,the blood supply in the femoral head medullary cavity of the model group was poor,the empty bone lacuna rate was increased(P<0.05),the bone mineral density and bone volume fraction were significantly decreased(P<0.05),the maximum load and elastic modulus of the femoral head were decreased(P<0.05),and the mRNA expression levels of Akt1,PI3K,VEGF and CD31 in whole blood were decreased(P<0.05).Compared with the model group,the blood supply in the femoral head medullary cavity was relatively good,the empty bone lacuna rate was decreased(P<0.05),the bone mineral density,bone volume fraction,trabecular number and trabecular thickness were significantly increased(P<0.05),the trabecular separation was significantly decreased(P<0.05),the maximum load and elastic modulus of the femoral head were increased(P<0.05),and the mRNA expression levels of Akt1,PI3K,VEGF and CD31 in the whole blood were increased(P<0.05)in the high-dose group of Guhuaisi Kangfu Pills and Xianling Gubao Capsules group.There was no significant difference in the above indexes between the high-dose group of Guhuaisi Kangfu Pills and the Xianling Gubao Capsules group(P>0.05).Conclusion Guhuaisi Kangfu Pills improves SONFH in rats,and its mechanism is related to the promotion of VEGF/PI3K/Akt pathway gene expression,thereby promoting angiogenesis.
Guhuaisi Kangfu Pillssteroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head(SONFH)angiogenesisphosphatidylinositol 3-kinase(PI3K)protein kinase B(Akt)1vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule 1(CD31)rats